These aren't "all in your head." Depression can cause real changes in your body. For instance, it can slow down your digestion, which can result in stomach problems.

Because these symptoms happen with many conditions, people with depression may never get help for them. They don't realize that their physical problems might be caused by their mental illness. A lot of doctors miss them, too.

Physical Symptoms

Depression seems to be related to improper functioning of nerve cell networks or pathways that connect the brain areas that process emotional information. Some of these networks also process information for sensing physical pain. So many experts think that depression can make you feel pain differently than other people.